Israel Rejects Syrian Charges of Israeli Build-up on Golan

Israel has rejected Syrian charges of an aggressive buildup of Israeli forces in the Golan Heights with a counter-charge that a number of violations by Syria of the disengagement agreement had occurred recently. The Israeli response is contained in a letter to United Nations Secretary General Kurt Waldheim from Yosef Tekoah, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN.

Tekoah said that Israel had submitted complaints “regarding those violations to the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force Command.” Tekoah said that a mobilization of reserves of the Israel Defense Forces was “an exercise of a limited nature intended to test mobilization procedures.” He added that “a public statement to carry it out in the near future has been issued and an announcement to that effect” had been sent to the UNDOF command in the area.